Iowans urge Grassley to ‘do his job’

A group of Iowans have quickly worked to urge U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley to take action in holding Supreme Court justice confirmation hearings, and at least a few dozen Jasper County residents have joined them.

Progress Iowa, a nonprofit, is circulating a petition urging Grassley to agree to hold prompt confirmation hearings for President Barack Obama’s upcoming nominee to replace Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, who died Feb. 6. The petition, titled “Tell Sen. Grassley: Do Your Job” received more than 4,500 signatures in its first few days of circulation, nearly 50 from Jasper County.

Matt Sinovic, the executive director of Progress Iowa, who traveled through Jasper County recently on his way back from hearing Grassley speak at multiple locations, and said support for Grassley undertaking confirmation hearings as the chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee is widespread.

“People of all ages, and from all parts of the state and of various political affiliations, mostly want the same thing, in this case,” Sinovic said. “They just want the Senate to do its job.”

Sinovic said of the first 4,537 total signatures collected — over about a four-day span — 48 listed Jasper County zip codes with their addresses. The plan is to print off a quantity of copies of the U.S. Constitution, equal to the petition signature total, and deliver those copies to Grassley’s office, with the idea it will encourage the 35-year senator to follow through with what many feel are the Senate’s Constitutional obligations.

“Congress moves at a notoriously glacial pace anyway,” Sinovic said. “That’s why I think it strikes a nerve with people that of the most basic, fundamental tasks of government, appointing judges so that the court can do business is among those tasks.”

Sinovic said he feels constituents immediately knew how Grassley felt when the senator issued a news release just hours after the passing of Scalia was made public, praising Scalia and calling for the nation to hold off until after the November presidential elections before a new justice confirmation process begins.

Obama announced nearly immediately that he plans to submit a nominee.

“Given the huge divide in the country, and the fact that this president, above all others, has made no bones about his goal to use the courts to circumvent Congress and push through his own agenda, it only makes sense that we defer to the American people who will elect a new president to select the next Supreme Court justice,” Grassley said in his initial statement.

Sinovic said the timing of such a politicized statement got the attention of Iowans.

“He couldn’t wait a single day,” Sinovic said.

However, in the days thereafter, Grassley has been less clear about whether his committee will hold a confirmation hearing.

“I would wait until the nominee is made before I would make any decisions,” Grassley said during a Feb. 16 news conference.

Republicans on the Judiciary Committee released a letter Tuesday indicating they would decline to interview or discuss a nominee President Barack Obama sends to them.

“Because our decision is based on constitutional principle and born of a necessity to protect the will of the American people, this committee will not hold hearings on any Supreme Court nominee until after our next president is sworn in on Jan. 20, 2017,” the letter signed by the 11 Republicans on the committee said.

While the issue has split leaders mostly along party lines, though there have been a few exceptions. Two moderate Republican senators, Mark Kirk of Illinois and Susan Collins of Maine, have said in the past few days that hearings should be held.

Sinovic said there is an important precedent to be set this year in replacing Scalia, who died at age 79. Retirements could happen among Supreme Court justices in the years ahead, as Ruth Bader Ginsburg is 82 and Stephen Breyer is 77.

Even Orrin Hatch, the longtime Utah senator and senior Senate Republican who serves on the Judiciary Committee alongside Grassley, laughed when asked if he might be nominated for the court. Both he and Grassley are 81.

Sinovic said discussions are underway among Progress Iowa people as to when to deliver the copies of the Constitution to Grassley’s office. He said if Grassley were to reverse course and agree to hold hearings, Progress Iowa would re-examine its process, but still watch closely what happens next.

“We have to keep in mind what’s important here: open, fair hearings,” Sinovic said.

Contact Jason W. Brooks at 641-792-3121 ext. 6532 or jbrooks@newtondailynews.com